Testing the most effective battlefield counter-UAS technology has been the key focus of Exercise Baltic Trust, which brought together approximately 650 participants from 24 countries earlier this month, combining military training, operational experimentation and cooperation with industry to explore how emerging capabilities can be integrated into a coherent fighting system.
The centrepiece for the exercise was LCI-X Crucible 3-26, the latest stage of NATO Allied Command Transformation’s progressive C-UAS experimentation campaign. “ Crucible 3-26 examines how multiple UAS and counter-UAS cells can operate as part of a distributed structure—sharing information, contributing to a common operational picture and coordinating responses as threats move across units and operational areas,” according to a NATO briefing document. “The objective is not simply to demonstrate new technology. It is to understand whether different capabilities can work together under realistic operational pressure.
Baltic Trust placed emerging technology in the hands of military operators and exposed it to a threat-informed environment shaped by contemporary warfare. Participants trialled different methods to bring down Shahed drones.
According to Vladyslav Klochkov, Major General, PhD and Commander of the 93rd Ukrainian Mechanized Brigade in an X post: “Participants tested how detection systems, command and control systems, and countermeasures against UAVs can exchange data, generate a shared operational picture, and ensure a coordinated response. Such exercises help evaluate technologies directly in the field, identify their limitations, and refine solutions in line with real operational needs.”
Lessons identified during Crucible 3-26 will inform the next stage of the LCI-X campaign, said NATO. “Future experimentation will extend connectivity across greater distances and increasingly complex operational structures, supporting the development of scalable counter-UAS capabilities. From individual systems to connected cells and from connected cells to a distributed multinational network, the direction is clear.”
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(Image:NATO)